Melting Gold
by Xekstrin
Summary: Ruby and Pyrrha snuggle together on Ruby's bed and play video games together, Ruby has Strange New Feelings about her girlfriend. [Ruby/Pyrrha]
1. Chapter 1

She didn't even realize they had fallen asleep together until she heard Weiss the next morning, angrily calling out her name. Pyrrha's arms wrapped tighter around her waist, sleepily mumbling something against the back of her neck, and Ruby only had enough time to think _oh no_ before Weiss pulled aside the canopy on her bunk. Light slashed in. Wincing, Ruby pulled the covers over her head, trying to sink into the mattress and maybe turn into something small, like an ant. Or a dust mite.

"Honestly, Ruby," Weiss started, showing no mercy and yanking the covers down. "It may be the weekend but that is _no_ excuse to stay in bed till noon when you know we have tr—"

She felt Pyrrha stiffen up, suddenly awake as Weiss stared down at them, mouth agape. Ruby cleared her throat. Pyrrha's arms whipped back, her whole body now a chaste distance away.

"Heyyyyyyy Weiss…." Ruby said, eyes desperately looking for some sort of escape. "What's… what's up?"

Weiss shut the canopy without another word.

Welp.

Stifling her giggles, Pyrrha clapped both hands over her mouth as Ruby turned around to give her the most aghast look she could muster up. "Oh my god," she said under her breath, burying her face against Pyrrha's shoulder as she continued to shake with laughter. "Oh my god, Pyrrha, shut up. Shut up, _shut up_."

The door slammed loudly, making them both wince. They looked at each other then, torn between guilt and giggles for a few more seconds before Pyrrha lost it again, a rude " _pffffftthahahah_ " tearing from between her lips.

"I'm sorry, Ruby…" she said once she got control of herself again. She pulled the blankets up over her so that only her eyes showed, still creased from mirth. "That was awkward, and all my fault. I'm so sorry."

"It's okay, it's okay," Ruby assured her, pulling up the edge of the blanket to crawl underneath again, linking her arms around Pyrrha's neck to snuggle close. She tucked her head underneath Pyrrha's chin, sighing deeply at the feel of her body so close, and so warm. "It's not like we were doing anything bad. I think we just surprised her, is all. She'll get over it."

Something hard and plastic jabbed at her ribs; making a face, she shifted aside to see it was her portable gaming system. They had been playing all night with their headphones plugged in, curled up together. They must have simply passed out at one point before Pyrrha could bring herself to leave. She found her headphones tangled up under the pillow. To her eternal dismay, the soft earbud on one of them had popped loose, and she couldn't find it in the sheets. Crawling over Pyrrha to check the crevice between the wall and the mattress proved equally fruitless. "Oh man," she whined, showing it to Pyrrha. "Check this out. This is what I get for sleeping with them on, I guess. I don't even know where yours might have disappeared off to."

Taking the headphones, Pyrrha drew the cables through her fingers. Fiddling with the blunt end, her lips curled down in a frown, eyebrows tensing together. "Want me to get you new ones?" she offered at once, blurting it out and taking Ruby's hands between her own. Their hands caught together in the cables, twisted.

Ruby gave her a look.

"What?" she started, avoiding eye contact. Digging out the handheld they'd been playing on together, she toyed with it, moving it up and down on its little hinge. "You got me this Playplace—"

"Playspace," Ruby corrected her, pointing at the name on their toy. "It's a Playspace, Pyrrha. It's the newest model too, see?" She closed it shut, stroking one finger along its case. "Only the new ones have this cool red streak on the outside."

"Well," she said, "You got it for me, and I still don't know how to repay you."

Flushed, Ruby rolled her eyes. "What? No way. It was actually sort of… selfish! I needed someone to play with. And you know, you didn't— I mean, you don't even know what a Playspace is. It'd be a crime if I didn't enlighten you." She widened her hands, fingers flaring out dramatically. "A _crime_ , Pyrrha!"

Her hand slid up, to touch Ruby's shoulder, thumb stroking along the strap of her tank. Ruby's face immediately lit up. Though the touch was innocent, and they'd spent the better part of the night in a mess of sprawled limbs, something about the way Pyrrha looked at her just then made her more aware of their proximity. While they were comfortable in each other's personal space if they happened to fall that way, this felt deliberate. Like the difference between the times Pyrrha stood at her side on the firing range, critiquing her stance, and the times when she stood directly behind her to hold her arms, positioning them correctly. But she would always linger too long afterwards, her chest pressed against Ruby's back and her grip tight on her forearms. Her lips on Ruby's ear, murmuring instructions as Ruby would try to focus on anything except the sight of her biceps, close enough count the tight, shiny scars that crisscrossed her dark skin.

"Is that so?" she said, here and now, and Ruby realized she was staring at her.

Ruby's throat bobbed. "…Yeah!" she squeaked. "I needed. A Playspace buddy! And you're my girlfriend." Looking her in the eyes proved to be too much. Fiddling with Pyrrha's Playspace again, she opened it and closed it, the hinge squeaking in distress. "And I have this game where you can build a little avatar and make a town and visit each other, and I wanted you to visit my town because you're not really good at games but this one is super cute and easy and—" she drew a sharp breath, chest hitching as Pyrrha tucked a hand behind her head, fingers coiling through her hair. "—Maybe later I can ask dad to mail me one of the bigger consoles and we can play some shooting games cause I think you'd be good at that— though, I mean, you're the kind who gets motion sick from first person games, so maybe that's not the best idea after all. An-nnd— _nnnhnn_ —"

Pyrrha had been grasping the back of her neck, rubbing it fondly, but she paused when Ruby let out a strangled noise. Ducking her head even lower, Ruby tried not to embarrass herself any more than she already had, the entirety of her face red as her cape. Her breathing came out in short bursts, face scrunched up in humiliation. "Sorry," she whispered, the rapidfire squeaking hinge of the Playspace only getting faster. "I'm being weird."

The room felt too stifling, the blanket covering them now clinging uncomfortably from the sweat that built up on Ruby's body. "Are you okay?" she asked, gently closing one hand over Ruby's, forcing her to stop before she broke the toy.

The truth was, she wasn't sure. There were times when it felt like Pyrrha was just like any other friend, someone she could laugh with and share secrets with, someone she trusted. And she _did_ trust Pyrrha, it was just— she just didn't understand it when things shifted like this. The line between friend and girlfriend grew sharper, pressing between her ribs until she couldn't even breathe. If Pyrrha kept touching her like that, she risked melting into some unrecognizable puddle on the floor.

The door slammed again and they darted apart. Pulse pounding in her ears, Ruby lay rigid as she heard Yang's footsteps, recognizable to her even in her sleep. If Yang pestered her the way Weiss had, there was no way Ruby could pretend there was anything innocent about what had just been going on up here— even if, technically, nothing had happened at all.

Locking eyes with Pyrrha again, she waited for Yang to get whatever she was looking for and leave. There was a terrible moment when she was afraid Yang wouldn't leave— clutching Pyrrha's hand, she held it tightly as no more sound came from below. And then she heard her footsteps again, headed towards the door. It opened. Closed.

Ruby breathed again. Noticing she was still holding onto Pyrrha's hand, she let it go quickly, and they regarded each other from across the small space of the mattress.

"I should probably go," Pyrrha said at last. "I didn't mean to spend the night."

"Yeah," Ruby agreed, a bit too quickly, so she added, "I had so much fun, though. With you." Sitting up and swinging her legs over the side of the mattress, she let them dangle, already thinking about maybe taking a walk around campus. Something to clear her head. "I like being with you so much, Pyrrha."

In response, Pyrrha pushed aside her short hair to kiss her once, on the nape of her neck.

It felt the way molten gold looked.

 _I have to make her something_ , was all Ruby could think, dizzy and exhilarated. _I should make her something. I bet I could craft a necklace._ Or should it be practical? Would she like a multi-action knife better?

She hardly felt it when Pyrrha gave her a squeezing hug around the shoulders, hopping off the mattress. "Bye, Ruby," she said with a sweet smile and a farewell wave. "I'll see you later."

"Bye," she said back, faintly.

Bracelets, she decided. _Matching_ bracelets.


	2. Chapter 2

"Aww… you're wearing it," Ruby said, out of the blue.

Glancing up from what she was reading, Pyrrha waited for what she heard to properly register. And then she remembered- the bracelet around her wrist, the one Ruby had woven for her.

"Of course I am." Smiling and sitting straight, she closed her eyes, stretching her neck this way and that. After a series of satisfying pops, she sighed. "It's a lovely gift, Ruby. You spoil me."

Sitting opposite her at the library table, Ruby shifted in her spot. She pulled the end of her cape up to twirl it around her fingers, nervous as always when this line of conversation came up. "No I don't," she said, quiet. Clearing her throat, she brightened up, smiling at Pyrrha like a ray of sunshine. "But anyway, it looks soooo good?"

"Where's yours?"

Grinning, Ruby lifted up her forearm, rolling down her sleeve to display the matching bracelet.

" _Gayyyy_ ," Yang said under her breath, turning another page in her book.

Pouting, Ruby jerked to the side, shouldering Yang roughly. The chair rocked, balancing on two legs for a precarious moment before landing back with a loud snap. It echoed through the library, causing them all to wince and pause for three seconds, listening for the librarian to come after them. After gauging they wouldn't get in trouble, Ruby continued nudging Yang.

Ruby started prodding her sister in the ribs, poking her with both index fingers. "Shut up, Yang, nobody asked you." She hissed.

Not sparing Ruby a glance even when her chair threatened to tip over again, Yang just grinned. "Well, it's hard not to comment when you two are always making googly eyes at each other. Some of us are trying to get an education, here."

"Well nobody said you had to study with us!"

"And leave you alone with this rakish seducer of young innocents?" She jerked her head over at Pyrrha, who seemed torn between denial and apology. "No way."

Pantomiming extreme disbelief, Ruby rolled her eyes.

Leather covered fingertips drummed idly on the tabletop, the only display of nerves Pyrrha was known to make outside of a fight. "I don't mind if you want to chaperone our dates, Yang," she said, each word picked and gently laid out, carefully thought out beforehand. "But I must admit, I do find your timing... suspect."

"Suspect what do you mean suspect there's nothing to suspect here." Yang crossed her legs at the knee, shifting in her seat for a bit before uncrossing them again. "Why would anything be suspicious?"

Pyrrha just looked at her, face flat and both eyebrows arching.

Steepling her fingers and putting on a face of deep thought, Yang straightened up, taking a deep breath. "Okay fine." She opened her eyes only to avoid meeting Pyrrha's gaze, thumbs twiddling. "I need Pyrrha's notes because they're more legible than yours."

"Gotcha." Pyrrha snapped her fingers in triumph.

"Meh meh meh."

Bending over, Pyrrha rummaged through her messenger bag, pulling out a subject notebook. Tossing her hair over her shoulder as she straightened out, she slid the notebook over to Yang with a knowing grin. "To buy your cooperation, Ms. Xiao Long?"

She didn't even think twice. "Oh, hell yes. That's exactly the right price." Snatching the notebook, Yang's chair screeched as she stood up too fast, wood scraping against hardwood floors. "Enjoy your study date," she said, giving Ruby a jaunty salute.

"Is that what my _virtue_ is worth?" Ruby craned her neck to see what Pyrrha had scrawled on the face of the notebook. "Dust Theory notes?"

"Yep. Have fun, girls!"

"Oh my god."

Yang started humming under her breath, keeping it low until she reached the doorway, at which point she belted out: " _Pyrrha and Ruby, sittin' in a tree… K-I-S-S-I-N- Ow_!"

Pyrrha was pretty sure Ruby would never get that eraser back, but the expression on her face was one of pure satisfaction. Sitting back down with a huff, she crossed her arms and glared across the table at Pyrrha. Struggling and failing to fight a grin, Pyrrha just put her chin in her hands and smiled adoringly back at her girlfriend.

"Whatever did I do to deserve a face like that?" she asked, reaching out to flick Ruby right on the tip of her nose.

Ruby flinched, face twitching as she sat back a little bit. "You… you plot."

"How was that plotting?"

"You…" Ruby visibly struggled for the words. "You knew Yang would be here. And that she needed your notes. But we're not even studying Dust Theory today. But you brought the notebook anyway!" She pressed her palms to her head, squeezing in. "Ahh, it's just embarrassing, okay?"

Her smile dropped a few molars, concern setting in. "If you don't want to be alone with me-"

"No!" Ruby said, too quickly and too loudly.

They froze again, listening for the librarian.

"No," Ruby said, quieter. "I'm sorry. I'm just being weird again."

Shaking her head, Pyrrha picked up her things. "You're not being weird," she said, walking around the table so she could sit in Yang's vacated chair. She scooted it as close to Ruby's as she could, bumping their knees together under the table. "I like you."

"I like you too," Ruby said, leaning upwards to kiss Pyrrha on the cheek. She closed her eyes, accepting it with a spark of joy in her chest.

The rest of the assignment flew by. Pyrrha always found she concentrated better with Ruby around. Whether it was the result of wanting to show off or just energized by how happy the other girl made her, she couldn't tell. Ruby struggled a bit with some of the thicker textbooks until Pyrrha loaned her one of her temporary highlighters, helping her focus on the words.

Most people already knew about the prodigy in team RWBY who'd gotten skipped ahead two years and made leader of her own team; what was kept secret was that it was mostly based on martial prowess. Ruby had a hard time keeping up with some of the more advanced classes, and Pyrrha knew her pride took a dent every time she admitted she needed help.

Well, at least she wasn't as stubborn as Jaune.

"Closing time is in thirty minutes, ladies," the librarian, Miss Stella, noted, walking past them with an armful of textbooks. Wild scars rippled along her arm muscles, disappearing up her rolled-up sleeves as she set the whole bunch down right on top of the table they were studying at. She raised both her eyebrows at them meaningfully before heading off.

"Guess that means closing time is now," Ruby muttered, but not too loudly, in case the bat ears atop Miss Stella's head twitched in her direction. They returned the tablets they'd been borrowing, the thick frames humming with a comforting glow of green Dust. The physical books needed to be put back in place as well. Since everyone both loved and feared Beacon's librarian in equal measure, they decided to just go ahead and put the book away themselves rather than drop it in the return slot.

The library was almost chokingly quiet; Pyrrha realized they must be the only students here, what with most of the other hunters in training home for the weekend.

Ruby ran ahead, forcing Pyrrha to jog to keep up with her. It didn't strike Pyrrha as odd until she realized her girlfriend wasn't looking her in the eyes, either, or purposefully slinked further away whenever their fingers brushed together.

"Ruby," Pyrrha said after a moment, pausing with her hand still on the spine of a book. She nudged it in, sliding it in it's proper place. "You're… not upset with me are you?"

"...I just don't understand how you can do it," Ruby said, averting her eyes. Confused, Pyrrha slid another book back onto its proper place, glancing over her shoulder to see Ruby staring steadfast at the ground. Her arms stiff at her sides, and her hands balled into tiny fists, her whole posture screamed discomfort.

Concerned, Pyrrha took a step closer, putting a tentative hand on her shoulder. "Ruby?" she said, holding her by the back of her neck, a comforting gesture. But it made Ruby's face grow red, a pained expression flickering across her face.

Her throat bobbed. Looking up at her, Ruby's eyes searched her for something- for what, Pyrrha couldn't say. But she wanted it desperately. "I don't get it. How we can be normal one second, but then you touch me, and I-" she sucked in a deep breath, leaning into Pyrrha's hand when she cupped her face, stroking her cheek with her thumb. "It's like. Why am I the weak one? You know? I feel like I'm going crazy and you're just standing there, like nothing ever bothers you."

She reached up, took Pyrrha's hand off her face to twist it slightly, kissing the inside of her wrist.

Pyrrha, for her part, stood rigid as a column, the back of her mind screamed with a thousand things to say, but none of them converged into anything coherent so she remained quiet. That was safest, wasn't it? But Ruby needed an answer. She was in turmoil, and it was apparently her fault, and Pyrrha couldn't do anything to fix it. "I- I'm sorry," was all she could say, pulse beating like a war drum. "It does bother me, quite a lot."

Ruby blinked in surprise. Was that what she wanted to hear? Pyrrha hoped so. Did she feel vulnerable when Pyrrha put up her careful, stoic composure? All she had ever wanted to do was to let Ruby set her own pace for this. To be the responsible, older one.

"It bothers me a lot," she said, under her breath. "I think about you all the… all the time. I just don't want to push you into something you're not comfortable with."

A cough in the relative quiet of the library made them both tense up, surprise making them edgy. Finally making up her mind, Pyrrha turned her hand in Ruby's grip, holding her by the forearm and dragging her away. Whatever they were going to discuss, they needed more privacy to do it with. Their dorms were all full, the library too open, and everywhere else too exposed."Pyrrha, what-" Ruby squeaked.

She found a storage closet. With a flick of her fingers she activated her semblance, forcing open the lock and bustling them both inside.

On a whim, she turned off the light.

She couldn't see anything, but she could feel the skin of Ruby's wrist, feel her pulse beating wildly. Taking her hand in both of hers, she squeezed them reassuringly. "I do feel the same way as you," she assured her. It was easier to be honest in the dark. "But this is my first relationship as well as yours, so I'm just… trying to respect you. That's all."

"Oh," Ruby said. There was a pause. "That makes a lot of sense."

Despite herself, Pyrrha smiled, relief making her laugh. "I'm glad."

"So um…" Ruby stepped a little closer, swinging their hands together at their sides. "Does respecting me mean I have to kiss you first? Because I've been waiting for you to do something, because I don't wanna assume- I mean I don't wanna just bust out a smooch, you know, and like asking you to kiss me is so awkward I mean as we can both see right now I'm being pretty awkward!" she finished on a high, strangled note. "...Oh my god spay me."

"I was merely waiting for permission," Pyrrha said. "To- to kiss you. Not to spay you. Just saying."

Ruby burst into nervous giggles, the kind that rippled through her whole body. The cute ones that drove Pyrrha mad with how much she adored this girl, until she took her face in both hands, leaned down, and kissed her full on the mouth. When she pulled away Ruby wasn't giggling anymore, and she suddenly wished she hadn't until Ruby dragged her back down, kissing her again.

And then Ruby pounded her fists against Pyrrha's shoulders, lightly chambering her fists with a series of playful punches. "Pyrrhaaaaa! We're dead if Miss Stella catches us in here!"

Pyrrha leaned down, taking Ruby's earlobe and nipping it as she wrapped Ruby up in her arms, squeezing her as tightly as she could. "So we'd better be extra quiet, got it."

She sounded like she was just barely holding it together. "Not what I meant!"

Once they were sure Miss Stella wasn't prowling right outside, they scrambled out of the store room and out the library. Ruby took the lead, a tight grip on Pyrrha's wrist threatening to drag her along if Ruby forgot her speed again.

Just outside the door to RWBY's room, Pyrrha laced their fingers together, giving Ruby a smile. "Sleepover tonight?"

"Sure! I'm gonna go shower and brush my teeeeeeeeth," Ruby said, zipping into the room and then back out, taking off with her pajamas bundled in her arms.

Pyrrha returned to her room to tell Jaune she wouldn't be home tonight but to not worry. Purposefully, she walked to the far side of the dorm, using one of the other bathrooms to get ready and grateful for the option to make the shower as cold as possible.


	3. Chapter 3

The tree bore no fruit, but every branch hung heavy with its own burden.

Holding tightly onto Ruby's hand, Pyrrha looked up at the bowed tree, crooked and ancient. Rubber and steel swung limply on a breeze. Dozens- hundreds- of shoes hung from every limb, tied together with laces done in complex sailor's knots. The last rite of a Signal student.

At this time of year, Signal Campus echoed emptily, felt hollow. Everyone went home for the summer, or to a Hunting Academy after graduation.

Ruby didn't graduate with her friends.

So, stepping towards the tree, she swung her arm once and launched her boots up onto the tree. They soared through the air, spinning once before landing on a branch. It bent under the weight, groaning in protest. But it buoyed itself back up in the end and Ruby's red boots joined the others, for as long as they could stay.

Ruby clasped her hands in front of her, eyes fixated on the tree. Her bare toes curled, digging into the black, damp soil.

Pyrrha waited, not wanting to disturb her.

Finally, Ruby sighed. A line of tension peeled away from her shoulders as she relaxed, slumping a bit. "Thanks for coming with me, Pyrrha." Without thinking, Ruby reached her hand towards Pyrrha.

Pyrrha took it in an instant, standing at her side again. "Thank you for inviting me. I'm sorry you couldn't make it to the ceremony."

"I was on a mission. They understood."

Leaning against her, Ruby fit snugly underneath Pyrrha's arm. Pyrrha held her, free hand stroking Ruby's black hair, longer now than when they had first started dating. She teased Ruby relentlessly over letting her mane grow out, til the red streaks hung about her shoulders. "Can you show me around campus? I've never been to Patch before."

Brightening up, Ruby tugged on Pyrrha's hand, leading her away at once. "Yes! I'll show you where I used to hang out!"

Letting herself be dragged along, Pyrrha couldn't do anything to resist the warm, melting affection that blossomed inside her every time Ruby gave her one of those smiles.

She took Pyrrha through empty, open-air hallways, showing each classroom to be its own small building. All locked shut, of course, with the flowering bushes and trees littering the walkways with petals and pollen.

Humid, muggy island air made Pyrrha sweat even after the short stroll, and overhead the sky began to darken. Instead of lowering the temperature, the storm clouds seemed to seal it in. Wiping her brow with the back of one hand, Pyrrha kept up with Ruby's excited chatter even while half her mind was concerned with how they'd evade getting soaked.

"We're staying on the island overnight, correct?" she asked once they slipped past the iron bars of the front fence.

All the bars were carefully spaced apart so that any 'rebellious' student could easily sneak in and out whenever they wanted. It was a rule the teachers carefully constructed, one perfectly safe to break. Only freshmen really thought they were being naughty by doing it.

"Mhm. Let me double check with dad." Pulling out her scroll, Ruby dialed her father's number. They texted more than they chatted, something Pyrrha never commented on. Her own father demanded one voice call every other day, and a video chat at least once a month. "I have the house key, but I think he forgot to put the workshop keys in the flower pot."

She sent her father a long string of emojis, all of them disappointed.

"Is he returning very late? Surely we can distract ourselves until then..."

"No, he won't be back for a week at least."

Slowing down, Pyrrha tried to patch two and two together.

"We'll be alone?" she said, and the great Pyrrha Nikos' voice cracked with a squeak.

Ruby didn't seem phased at all. "Yep! I was going to doggysit Zwei, but dad wound up taking him on the mission anyway. So it'll just be a girl's night for the weekend!"

She actually stopped in her tracks, spine going rigid. "In your father's house? And he knows I'll be there?"

Eyebrows furrowing, Ruby just gave her a confused stare, jaw slightly slack. "Pyrrha... seriously? It's my house, too."

If she had warning, she could have been ready for this. But Pyrrha had been preparing what she'd say to Taiyang when she met him, thank him for his hospitality, maybe offer to stay at a hotel rather than inconvenience him.

Ruby twisted aside, a decidedly twisted smirk making her look smug and catlike. "Oh my... Are you blushing, Nikos? It's a cute look."

Shaking her head, Pyrrha picked up the pace so that she walked a few paces ahead of Ruby.

Her girlfriend trotted close behind, still jeering. "I can still see your blush! It's all the way up the back of your neck... even your ears are red! Oh my goooddd! Pyrrha Nikos is turning red as a tomato!"

"I am not!" Pyrrha ducked her head, covering her ears with both hands as she ran down the road leading to Signal. "You're the worst!"

When Ruby tried zipping around her in lightning-quick circles, Pyrrha just whipped one hand out. She caught her girlfriend, nearly clotheslining her as she hoisted her up over one shoulder. Ruby protested, laughing wildly, legs kicking as Pyrrha took her down to where the rental car waited.

* * *

"I'm hooome!" Ruby called to the empty house. She'd brought a spare pair of shoes for her trek to Signal; kicking them off at the doorway, she dropped all her things and ran down the hall, turning on all the lights. Pyrrha followed suit, carefully toeing off her boots and scanning her surroundings.

"Hungry?" Ruby prompted, zipping right up to her. She kept both hands tucked behind her back, head tilted curiously to the side.

"Tired, mostly. I've been driving all day."

"Okay." She vanished in a puff of petals, shouting from the kitchen. "Looks like there's leftovers in the fridge if you change your mind! You packed PJs, right?" Another rush of fragrant wind, and Ruby opened up a hallway door to reveal a bathroom. "And there's a toothbrush here still in its case, I think. Do you want to sleep in my room with me? It's got a tiny bed, just warning you."

"The beds in Beacon are tiny, too," she pointed out.

In the next eyeblink, Ruby stood in front of her. Both hands locked in hers. "So we can just bunk in dad's room. That bed's nice and big!"

Alarm bells sounded. "No, no, that won't be necessary. I can just sleep on the couch if your room is too crowded..."

"Pffft." Ruby waved her words aside. "We also have a guest room, silly. I'm pretty sure it's got clean sheets."

Outside, she heard the first tapotement of rain against the roof and windows.

"Look," Ruby said, "It's raining but still sunny. That means a witch is getting married."

The sunset struck over Patch's hilly terrain, syrupy like grenadine. Every window became a red lens. "I always heard it was foxes getting married."

Pyrrha helped Ruby search for the workshop keys, so that Ruby could finish a weekend assignment Ozpin requested of her.

"Although I could just undo the lock with a snap of my fingers," Pyrrha pointed out.

"That wouldn't break it?"

Ruby's focus was on a satchel in front of her, stuffed with Dust and tools. Bent over, she rummaged through it with a smile on her face, the light making her skin look soft and warm. Trying to catch her attention, Pyrrha cupped Ruby's face in her palm, forcing the other girl to pause and look up at her. "Why would I ever break something of yours on purpose?"

"Okay, well, I didn't mean to break Crescent Rose during my second year at Beacon but I did it anyway."

"When it involves my semblance, nothing happens that isn't in my control."

She said it with more surety and confidence than the claim necessitated. Ruby got momentarily flustered, clutching her satchel and twisting it between two hands. "So all those times my hair decs _accidentally_ rolled over to your dorm room were a setup, huh?"

"Oops." Pyrrha didn't sound remorseful in the slightest. "Looks like you caught me. How else was I supposed to ensure we had a chance to talk to each other?" She stroked Ruby's hair back behind her ears, combing it with her fingers. Ruby wore a pin in that moment, too, another addition to her generous collection. Three years of growth softened her, femininity and huntressing embraced with both arms.

Most of them were gifts, some of them 'borrowed' from Weiss and never returned. It burned Pyrrha in an unusual way to see the snowflake in Ruby's hair. Even though she knew her jealousy was irrational, she couldn't quite tamp it down, so she leaned over and kissed Ruby a little firmer than before.

Pyrrha snapped her fingers and unlocked the workshop.

They stayed up all night trying to finish Ruby's project, but had to call it quits at around three in the morning.

"The witching hour!" Ruby said. She stumbled every few steps, bright-eyed with the delirium that comes with staying up too late.

"What is it with you and witches," Pyrrha said, steadying her.

"Witches, and monsters, are _very_ cool." She twirled around in front of Pyrrha, shooting finger guns at her before vanishing into the bathroom to wash off all the Dust.

Cramped as it was, they wound up curled together in Ruby's bed. She hung her canopy over the frame, a little nest for them. Pyrrha tucked it away as another fact about Ruby she didn't realize before. Though maybe it should have been obvious, since she slept with a mask every time she couldn't have any other shelter.

Out here in Patch, it was almost distressingly dark and quiet. Ruby had no neighbors for miles, and one solitary street light crackled down the street that lead to the main roads.

"Nora would hate it here." Pyrrha pulled Ruby close to her chest. This close she could smell Ruby's hair, freshly washed. She smelled so good, sweet like strawberries. Sweet enough that her mouth threatened to water. "She always needs a night light."

Ruby mumbled, half-asleep. "That's so cute."

She nuzzled her face against Pyrrha's chest, and before they knew it they were fast asleep.


End file.
